Tulare hospital pays $2.4M to settle federal suit

VISALIA, Calif. 
A Tulare County hospital and health-care system have agreed to pay more than $2.4 million to settle a federal whistleblower lawsuit alleging they broke Medicare's anti-kickback rules.

The Tulare Regional Medical Center and its parent, the Tulare District Healthcare System, were accused of giving doctors who referred Medicare patients to the health care system a break on their rent and the cost of commercial real estate, as well as forgiving their debts.